Network or Information Technology (IT) personnel may sometimes need to physically access a network device. For example, a network administrator may need to access a Personal Computer (PC) that is connected to an office network. The network administrator may want to, for example, re-boot a PC that is not operating properly (e.g., when the PC has hung up). Similarly, the network administrator might need to perform other hardware or software maintenance, repair, replacement, and/or upgrade functions.
In order to physically locate a network device, it is known that a database can be manually created and updated. For example, a logbook or spreadsheet might list each PC in an office network along with a notation that reflects the physical location of that PC (e.g., “PC101—Fourth Floor, Bob's Office”). As another approach, the physical location of network device can be tracked using a naming convention along with an appropriate label on each device (e.g. “Sales_Department—3rd_Floor” to indicate a general area where a printer is located).
These approaches, however, have a number of disadvantages. For example, creating and manually updating a database and/or device labels can be a time consuming task, especially when a network includes a large number of devices. In addition, the approaches are prone to error, such as mistakes that can occur during data entry. Similarly, an employee might move a network device to another location without informing the network administrator (e.g., when the device communicates via a wireless network). Moreover, it might be difficult to find a particular network device even when the information is correct. For example, a PC could be hidden under a desk or there might be a large number of network devices in a general area (e.g., the network device could be one disk drive in a dense array of disk drives).
As another approach, a tracking system, such a Global Positioning System (GPS) or Infra-Red (IR) system, can help determine the physical location of a network device. The cost of such a tracking system, however, can make the approach impractical (especially when a network includes a large number of devices).